General News Manassas City police want to photograph teen in sexually explicit manner

I'm not really offended by the warrant itself, because the appearance of his penis is of obvious evidentiary value, given the nature of the charges. I don't think it can be considered child pornography, given the intent is to prove allegations, not to distribute to anyone outside the justice system for the purpose of sexual gratification.

The bullshit part is the fact that charges were filed in the first place. I don't get why is this even put on the same level as an adult forcing a child to take nude pictures. It really isn't similar at all. One is a severe form of child abuse, whereas the other is a teen doing something fun that is of debatable appropriateness. It's his body and he was the one making the choices of what to do, so it should be left up to his parents to decide what, if any, punishment will be meted out for his behavior. If the girl's parents are angry, they can take it up with the boy's parents, and vice versa.

Also, if she isn't going to be charged, that makes this story sound rather suspicious.

 

Well, no, charges shouldn't have been filed at all. The crime itself isn't something that was really worth bringing the cops into.

The threat, however, is basically how the entire system is set up: you plead guilty and save us the time and expense of convicting you, or we gather every single thing we need to convict you, then nail you to the wall. The system extorts everybody to get plea deals, because if we tried even a fraction of the guys we plead out the financial cost would suffocate the system. If that sounds like bullshit, go after the entire system, since that's where the problem lies.

 

In my mind, who cares if he sent images of his penis? Why so much fuss over what I see as little or nothing? This is really horrible. Teens are going to 'sext' each other, like it or not. We need to stop acting like it's going to curl the spines of America's youth, and cause the collapse of civilization. I'm always amazed how prudish this place can be. Branding kids who get caught as sex offenders for life is just stupid and wrong. You could commit a violent crime and get off with less. It's an idiotic system.

 

To clarify here...child pornography is defined as pictures of someone underage engaged in sexual acts. Simple nudity in and of itself is not a crime. However sending nude pictures to a minor or having a minor send nude pictures is considered child pornography.

 

Is there even any statuatory involved in this case? BOTH of them are minors.

 

Two questions:

1. Why has the girl not had her collar felt?
2. Is this warrant even legal?

 

This is so messed up. These laws badly need to change so that teens aren't treated like child abusers by sending pictures of themselves.

 

Strictly speaking, the 17 year old did produce and distribute child pornography. But by the same token, someone who commits suicide is a 'murderer'. The main reason why it's inappropriate to treat suicide attemptees as murderers is the same reason why it's inappropriate to treat a teen as a child pornographer for sending pictures of themselves; The perpetrator is also the victim whom the law is intended to benefit.

In this case, not only is the child victim being prosecuted for abusing himself, they also want to perpetrate on him the abuse he is being prosecuted for doing to himself. In fact, the abuse they want to do to him is even worse, since this time he'd be forced to do it in an extremely humiliating way.

 

The fuck? That's utterly ridiculous.

 

Welcome to the backwards, still puritanical USA, in which nobody wants to believe that teenagers actually have *gasp* sexual feelings, and ways to express them. Almost nothing makes Americans so uncomfortable as basic biology.

The unspoken ideal: Reinforce the idea that sex is taboo at a young age.

It's sad. This kid could get branded as a sex offender for life.

These laws are among the most draconian I've seen.

 

isn't this also sexist? the boy was charged but not the girl?